Microsoft originally told us that Surface Pro would bow in the January of this year, but it looks as though the Redmond, Washington-based company is running a bit behind schedule. Microsoft announced today that Surface Pro would actually launch on February 9 in the U.S. and Canada.

Unlike Surface RT, which runs Windows RT and lacks Windows software backwards compatibility due to its use of an ARM processor, Surface Pro can handle the entire Windows library thanks to Windows 8 Pro. The tablet packs in a Core i5 processor, 1080p display, Mini DisplayPort, and a USB 3.0 port. The tablet is also much pricier than its Surface RT counterpart, which starts at $499. The 64GB version is priced at $899 while the 128GB model will cost you $999.

I can't think of any good reason to use it for business either. At this price with this screen and storage it's an expensive toy, that would be ok for home use, except it doesn't make any sense financially.

Expensive toy? Right, because the $700 iPad 64GB is a better buy...after adding a keyboard case and AppleCare to extend the warranty to match this, it's the same price as Surface Pro, still with no video out, no USB, no x86 compatibility, etc etc etc

The difference is simple. The cheapest surface pro is $900 where you can get the cheapest iPad 2 for $400. If you are using this for pure business use, you would not be putting music, video or games on it, making 16gb fine. I have trouble understanding why any business would need a touchscreen device vs say a normal laptop.

You're thinking too simply. A Surface Pro is a computer that also has a touch screen. It's not like because a computer has a touch screen that you HAVE to use it for everything. The cheapest Pro is $900 and the cheapest current generation iPad with 64GB of storage is $700. The differences are with the Pro you can run all your Windows software that you already own or have collected. You also get full USB 3 ports. That $200 gets you SO much more I don't see how anybody can't understand the benefits.

Tablets are by nature a portable device, why should tethering a bunch of things be considered a positive? That's what wifi and bluetooth are for.

Don't get me wrong, I like the Surface (even the RT), but the lack of fullscreen touch-optimized Surface RT apps is a huge strike at the moment. I have Windows 8 on my laptop and full-screen tablet apps are not what I'd be using it for right now.

At this point I think I'd be more interested in a 13" or 15" laptop with an IPS touchscreen rather than the Surface, at least until the lack of dedicated touchscreen applications for Windows 8 gets sorted out.

It's another ultra thin laptop with small amount of HD and limited spec. MS really does want to reflect Apples hardware business model !. It's a shame that these large companies still don't see that we as users want to be able to mod our hardware and software so we can attract attention to our new devices, it's called pride of ownership and it's really an ego boost when "mine looks the same as yours but can yours do this ?" It's also why Android has such a strong market and gaining market share all the time.

About half of the people I've seen with iPhones or Android phones use the default wallpaper and layout. Most people show off their 'flair' by slapping some rubberized plastic case on the device. But... we're talking about a laptop here... You CAN buy laptops with a discrete (removable) GPU, CPU and RAM but they are thick and heavy. The average person does NOT want to lug around a laptop that looks straight out of the 90's.

Android is gaining such a high market-share because it is both FREE and so many companies are producing devices with Android. There are only a few OS's right now. iOS, blackberry, windows phone and Android. Only Android is free and iOS and Blackberry aren't available for licencing.

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